Hope of the Damned
by jam1029
Summary: A woman with aspirations of aiding mankind and its struggles in a primitive time of medicine looks to dark forces in hope of achieving her desires. However, the dark unwittingly discovers a hope of its own upon this woman's approach.
1. Chapter 1: Immortal Intrigue

**_This story is not about the same vampire portrayed in the Castlevania series. Whether this being is a vampire at all is in question, but the term "vampire" best conveys what we mortals can currently conceive this entity to be. Only one aspect of its character can be spoken of truthfully. Whatever it is, it is damned in the eyes of the Lord._**

(A Vampire has no interest with carnal pleasures. Vampires are of the undead. For them to reproduce is a contradiction of their nature. But, they do have their own twisted forms of gratification, each unique unto themselves. That is why the woman looking to become the World's greatest physician, Lisa, is a plausible beginning, as it was in the Castlevania series. So, from that starting point, I will attempt to correct the mistakes made from the short anime and how a being referred to as "Dracula" should have been presented to the audience.)

Lisa thought she was prepared for the horrors that she would behold along her way to meet the one whose legends tell of atrocities have been carried down through the generations of local townsfolk. Naively, Lisa believed most the stories to be just superstition, but that opinion quickly changed as she looked on at the orchard of sun bleached skeletons held aloft by wooden stakes that accompanied her approach to the foreboding mansion. Now, somewhat unnerved, the woman drew near the entrance to the castle's doors, imagining the untold terrors of what may lie behind the double barrier. After attempting to restore the bravery which initially allowed her to set out on her journey, Lisa pounded her fist on the large wooden doors. Following this, she asked in a loud voice for permission to have an audience with the lord of the manor. Her pleas went unanswered, but the woman was unwilling to abandon her dream of aiding humanity in its current distress of wide spread disease. She reached out with both hands and placed them upon the surface of one of the two doors. To her surprise, it opened with no effort on her behalf. It was as if the moment she was going to push the wooden obstacle, someone had opened it from the inside, allowing her to enter. After inspecting her surroundings, she could see no one around. A large pavilion aesthetically designed with lit candles, extravagant carpets, suits of armor from centuries past, and numerous portraits decorated the lower level. Lisa's eyes traced the blood red carpet below her feet to where it took a diverging path, each leading to a set of stairs which ascended to the second story. She turned toward the entrance momentarily and looked back at the staircases. One half of the room reflected the other nearly identically, aside from a few minor discrepancies. Looking upward to the second floor balcony, another site shocked her into a brief moment of terror. Staring down from the center of the upper floor stood a figure resembling a man, cloaked in a black cape. Lisa felt as if she could feel its gaze piercing back into her eyes, though she couldn't discern any features of the onlooker's face at the distance she perceived it from.

Reinforcing her resolution with the reasoning as to why she came, Lisa summoned the courage that had brought her this far and shouted to the ominous individual, "I am looking for the owner of this manor, to ask…" But, before she could say another word, the cloaked being shouted down from atop the staircase, "Why is it that you have come here, alone to this accursed abode?" Lisa's gaze dropped to the floor momentarily after the interruption. Slowly raising her head, she began explaining her motive for seeking out such an uninviting place. "I am here on behalf of humanity; I…" She stopped, startled to find the individual standing directly in front of her now. The figure appeared to be a handsome man around forty years of age. He had dark hair that fell covering his ears and a goatee. The figure towered over the young woman. "Humans," he uttered with a sound of disdain in his tone. "What reason should I have to care for those who view me as a monster and a scourge upon their lives?"

"Are you the proprietor of this establishment?" Lisa asked.

"Yes," a commanding voice replied. "I am Vlad Tepes; the one spoken of in tales of horror through the years by locals. But, the stories passed down by mortals are mostly fables. The actions I have taken during my time upon this earth cannot be expressed properly with words alone. The title Dracula and the feeling of dread its resonance brings to mortal ears best relates what I am."

"Dracula!" the name repeated itself in the woman's head. Lisa's eyes widened in near disbelief of what she had just heard. Though she was not from Wallachia, or any nearby village, the name of Dracula was well known by most in central Europe as a demon who fed on the souls of men and relished in humanities struggles. Though priding herself a woman of the empirical sciences, Lisa was not foolish enough to ignore the endless possibilities that may lay hidden within the earth which humanity had yet to uncover or could even begin to understand. Dracula was said to have been an immortal being, who was once a man himself. Through some horrid act of blasphemy, he cursed both God and man, binding his soul to this world, shunning the light and embracing the night's darkness, gradually becoming its master. He ruled the domain of shadows. A place where the sun's light and the hope of a new day were absent. Lisa attempted to shake these wild thoughts that filled her mind, so as to strengthen her resolve.

"If you are as wicked as they say and worse still as you claim, why have you tolerated my approach to your residence and my being here now?" Lisa struggled to harden her expression.

Dracula's mouth narrowed and he spoke. "Would you rather I tear your throat out, here and now?" Lisa took a step back, clasping her hands together, as she brought them up to her chest in a subconscious gesture to protect her neck.

His focus sharpened and he turned to face Lisa glaring directly into her eyes. Sounding somewhat annoyed, he spoke, "I do that which brings me pleasure!" He darted behind the woman without her noticing his movements. His voice sounded from a direction unexpected to Lisa, startling her. "You live only because I am intrigued… no man would dare make the pilgrimage you have. A woman with your daring is a novelty among humans. Though, mistaking stupidity for courage has been a common occurrence that has plagued mankind from its inception."

"So, I am alive still due to my own merit, is that correct?" Lisa asked in reply. A downward gaze fell from the castle's master, peering into the eyes of a staunchness he had not witnessed for centuries in a human. Admiration for the valor which exuded from the tone and words uttered by the woman charmed Dracula momentarily. "If you have such disdain for humanity, please, look upon me as an individual separate from the ambitions of mundane men. I come to you pleading for knowledge! A wisdom which could never be accomplished in the short time mortals stay on earth."

Dracula turned his head from the woman's wide eyes, and in a wrathful tone spoke saying, "Witch! You come to me seeking power to aid your selfish ambitions..."

"No!" Lisa exclaimed. "Not at all!" The truth of her motives displaced any fear within her heart. "I was sincere when I said I wished to aid humanity, and though you despise men for whatever reasons you may have, if granted the knowledge I request, I will show you the dawning of a new humanity!" Lisa became embolden by her own words. "A humanity which will breed individuals that even you may admire, in time."

Dracula brought a hand to his face and stared outwardly as if he was peering into the future. A few seconds later, and a reply came from his lips. "This wisdom you seek; how will you use it to aid humanity?" he questioned after turning from the woman. "The use of magick would condemn you as a witch by the very ones whom you wish to help."

"Through practical means," Lisa replied. "Means which other people can understand, so that mankind may educate itself, furthering still their knowledge as time progresses." Lisa elaborated, "There are men of science who are persecuted for seeking out the truth by the church. I am willing to sacrifice my life if need be for the betterment of humanity, but I desire to accomplish something of significance while I am still of this earth!"

"Your science doesn't differ much from the magick I spoke of earlier, in the minds of religious zealots." His back still toward Lisa, Dracula recognized the ambitions she spoke of as sincere, though naïve. "You will be branded a witch and most likely executed." He finished, "And these are the men that you wish to aid in your lifetime?"'

Lisa looked intently at her host, "I have already explained, I desire to aid humanity in a way that will further their wisdom well after I am dead." She admitted that the very ones impeding her progress would likely be the greatest benefactors from the answers she sought, but Lisa kept speaking of humanity and its future. "There will come a day when the repressors of truth will be taken from their seats of power, and in their place will be a science that will benefit all of mankind, trumping preconceived superstitions of the past."

Lisa clutched at her heart as she took her first steps toward the Lord of Darkness. "I swear to you, I have spoken in earnest of my will, and the fact that I am in your presence, traveling here alone, should emphasize the sincerity of my words."

Dracula straightened himself and looked down upon his guest with half closed eyes. "Very well, I will grant your request, as your words have won my favor." With clasped hands, Lisa beamed smiling, wide eyed. Turning his side to her, Dracula continued. "However, do not forget that I do this not for humanity, but for you Lisa _, because it is my will." He began walking toward a door in the direction he was facing. Lisa tagged along, trailing behind slightly. "You are a rarity among your kind; one whose thoughts differ vastly from the selfishness of your mortal counterparts."

Upon reaching the door, Dracula presented a key to the woman. "I have shown you the door to your ambitions. It is up to you to unlock it and discover what lies behind." Taking the key from his outstretched hand, Lisa elatedly expressed her gratitude, thanking her mysterious benefactor.

"Before you turn the key and unlock your possible fate, consider whom it is you are asking this desire from," Dracula warned. Lisa looked steadfast into his eyes without making a sound shortly before speaking. "To me, you are no devil. A fallen angel perhaps, but not the wicked individual I have heard so much about." She placed the key into the lock. "There is a goodness about you that you may not recognize, but I can see it."

She turned the key, and the lock clicked open, after which Dracula replied, "The devil has the power to present himself in many forms. A beacon of light is but one of them." As Lisa reached for the door, Dracula gently grasped Lisa's hand in his icy embrace. "Once you turn that room's handle and step across its threshold, there is no going back."

Lisa took her hands and clutched his with both, stating, "In my mind, it is already too late." She turned the handle and pushed the door open while still holding on to Dracula's frigid grip. In astonishment from the sites she beheld, Lisa stepped into the room without releasing the angel she regarded him as from her hold.


	2. Chapter 2: Mortal Realization

The cart parading its' captive, who was caged within and fettered by both feet and ankles, made intentional, slow progress, as the single horse drawn carriage followed a set course. Tears began to roll down the dirty face of the condemned within, passing through her unkept hair. Upon arriving at his destination, the horseman was directed to travel through the mob once again by the town's religious leaders. The prisoner was covered in whatever filth the maddened civilians of the town could find to throw at her. Some concocted vats of disgust, adding numerous foul ingredients with the vigor and precision of an alchemist in search of the philosopher's stone. As the cart took the same path it traveled its' first venture, the woman inside broke down in tears as she considered how unjust her treatment had been at the hands of those whom she helped. On her knees, face down in her arms with her hands clasped together, the woman began praying, and upon uttering the word, "God", a figure made itself manifest as best it could, in hopes of comforting the wretch.

"I told you this day would come, Lisa," the figure said as the carriage carrying them began its' slow turn around the fountain's bend. "The humanity you wished to protect is sending you to your death, and the dawning of a new man you dreamed of was never to come."

"And, you knew this," Lisa admitted sorrowfully, wiping her eyes. "You knew through all of your wisdom, yet I ignored your plea." Lisa grasped at the straw beneath her in frustration of her hopeful, green ignorance. "Not even a year's time had passed, and I was condemned as a witch, just as you said, by the very people you knew would persecute me." His presence in her temporary cell brought Lisa's mind back to its' uncondemn, former self, somewhat. Thoughts returned, as if she would see tomorrow, relieving the grief that she was convinced would consume her until the execution. Her cognition turned from her own state of peril, back to its' normal, inquisitive nature, questioning what she believed to be a deeply strange curiosity of her companion. "How is it that you can be present here in the daylight?"

In complete shadow at the time, the vampire raised his translucent arm, allowing his hand to touch the sunlight as it passed through the carriage's bars. His hand suddenly vanished from sight, but his gaze remained fixed on Lisa. For the first time she could think of, he smiled in amusement. "I am immortal; the sun does not harm me, but instead cloaks my very being, along with my powers." He continued, "I can never be where daylight is, though I still am." He looked at where a portion of his hand should have been before finishing, "The sun erases my existence until night sets in."

The cart holding Lisa and her guest was in ear shot of the crowd's growing noises of bloodlust. The vampire's gaze shifted toward the direction of their jeering, as he discerned voices from the crowd, each voice from the others. "Do you remember the boy you treated that other physicians claimed would lose use of his leg, until you arrived?" Lisa raised her head and answered, "Y-Yes," with interested hope. "The mother who praised you for your aid in her son's time of need now curses your ever being born." Pain could be seen in Lisa's expression. "The beggar you fed almost daily; the mid-wife and the husband of the child you saved, shout insults at you now." Lisa's face became more and more anguished with each word. "Even the dozens you saved from an episode of consumption curse your name!" Lisa knew the last ingratitude most of all, as it brought her person to the attention of the church, which delivered this fate upon her. She brought her hands to her face and began weeping uncontrollably.

"However," the vampire's voice became tepid, "The leper you healed looks on you as if you were more than mortal." Lisa's weeping slowly desisted as she looked on in interest. "As we speak, the young man is praying for you, offering his own life to God in order to save yours." A quick laugh escaped Lisa's parted lips as she looked downwardly in remembrance of the man's gratitude.

Refuse thrown from the audience hit the top of the mobile cage. As the condemned began to come closer to the waiting, malice driven crowd, the vampire made it so that nothing thrown by them could touch Lisa within her confinement.

After a little time passed, the townsfolk looked on at the poor, "demon worshipping," victim that they would soon send to her death with some astonishment. Most watched as she conversed with what appeared to be no one, and a few of the more superstitious began making not so outlandish claims that she was conversing with the devil in her final moments. The group of young boys, who were viciously throwing garbage at the carriage, was amazed that nothing they threw could hit their intended target. This was more than enough to convince the frenzied masses that these two examples were absolute proof the condemned had and was still colluding with dark forces.

"Can they not see you… at least the little I can make of you while in the shadows?" Lisa inquired. "No," the vampire answered. "I am here for you alone." Dracula reached for the woman's sunlit hands, but his vanished without any touch as they approached. Lisa looked down at the marvel until the vampire spoke, "Lisa." Her eyes slowly rose to his. "You are destined to die tonight." A sincerity she hadn't witnessed since their first encounter showed in Dracula's stare.

Lisa responded to the vampire's assurance, resting on both her knees. Her hands resting limp in her lap, she asked in a melancholy tone, "So, you haven't come to save me then?" Her eyes fell with her head as she spoke, looking down to the left now.

"No, your life I cannot save," Dracula stated. "Saving lives is not within my power." His eyes never left the woman's woeful countenance.

"So, why is it you have come to me now!?" Lisa screamed so loud, it brought many of the townsfolk to a murmur. She straightened her posture, while still on her knees, stretching her neck out staring through a wide opened, water filled gaze, making her large eyes look even bigger, magnified by her tears. Kneeling with elbows on her knees, her hands and fingers clutched upward toward a non-existent hope.

Sitting back, with one leg straightened and the other bent, resting his left arm upon it, the vampire replied, "I have not abandoned you Lisa." His eyes fell from her look for the first time she could remember. Returning his former gaze to the girl, with complete sincerity in his face, Dracula spoke, "In your most desperate moment, I will come to you with a decision that you must make." Lisa leaned back in fear of the prospect she imagined from Dracula's words. "Whatever choice you do make, remember you will die tonight." After this remark, the speaker's visage broke, turning into light particles and vanished, merging with the sun's glow. As Lisa marveled at what she witnessed, she attempted to beg him from leaving, but before she could get her exclamation out, some foul smelling cloth, caked in what appeared to be excrement, hit the desperate woman in the face, after ricocheting off one of the cage's bars. Lisa wiped her face as best she could and placed her head in her hands as the anguish which accompanied her before Dracula's arrival returned with his departure.


	3. Chapter 3: The Christian Way

Dried kindling wood about two feet high surrounded a ten foot stake just outside the town's church. The entire community stood around the artifice in anticipation of the spectacle that would soon take place. A group elder women perceived as more pious than most others devoted themselves to prayer, sobbing and crossing themselves before looking to the sky with clasped hands. Many spectators were drunk, and continued to drink in merriment over the sight that would soon transpire. Even children stood at the sides of their parents to witness an irredeemable "sinner" die for her blasphemous ways. These parents were encouraged by the church to bring their young ones to witness firsthand how God answered those who were foolish enough to be ensnared by the evils of the devil. It was a religious holiday for all who stood by, waiting for the abominable act to commence. That is, for all but one man who cared not for public opinion, having been an outcast from the rest of society for nearly half his life. The former leper cured from all disease by the wisdom of the condemned looked on from the back of the crowd uneasily and in a building anguish of the unfolding event. He could not understand how this could possibly be God's will, damning the one who had given him so much; a second birth as it were and a chance at a new life. Was it not providence which had saved him from his wretched state? How could it not have been? Looking on at the crowd, the man saw no compassion from any of the Christian onlookers. Even the women in prayer who wept were a terrifying sight for him to behold. He understood that the tears they shed were false, being but a show put on for themselves and that not a drop fell for his wrongly accused savior. Tears began to well in his own eyes as he cursed the townsfolk in his mind, along with his own timid nature. If possible and if he had the courage, the man would have given his life for Lisa in order to satisfy the blood hungry gatherers. But, the cruelty he endured in the past by very similar people made it evident that there was nothing humanly possible that could be done to prevent the atrocity from being carried out.

The sound of slowly trotting hooves brought about a contagious silence infecting the multitude. Without raising his head, the former leper cried uncontrollably as he took his hat from his head, biting down on it so as to stifle his cries. He turned from the black mass and hurriedly gated from the congregation. He could not bear to watch the Christ like figure in his mind, crucified by these philistines.

The horse drawn wagon was driven by a lone coachman wearing an oversized hat that covered his eyes atop his sunken head. He was motionless while holding the reigns with both hands. Directly behind him knelt the fettered captive who remained as motionless as the coach driver. Her dirty hair straggled in all directions obscuring her face from the onlookers who had made a path for the carriage to reach its destination. Awaiting their approach stood three members of the town's clergy, two priests and the bishop who brought the sentence down upon the young woman. A large hooded figure came into view of everyone seconds later, walking from the direction the clergymen had appeared from. The people of the town remained silent as the carriage stopped a few feet from the denounced final earthly destination. With key in hand, the hooded figure climbed aboard the platform of the coach and unhinged the cuffs that bound the prisoner's hands. He lifted her with ease and carried the woman to the large pillar, tying both her arms crossed at the elbows and her feet tightly to the erect, limbless tree trunk She moaned in pain as she was held aloft from the kindling below. After this, the bishop walked in front of the poor woman, looking back at her momentarily, and then lowered his head just before raising it to address the crowd.

Lisa was in a daze as the bishop spoke. His words didn't reach her ears as she looked upward with her eyes as she attempted to raise her head. It was twilight, and she gave a quick, delirious smile which soon faded into a tearful whimper.

"Why has this happened to me, oh God," she muttered to herself. "I only wished to help these people, relieving them of what suffering they endured as best I could."

"Why has this happened to me?" she repeated before breaking down into uncontrollable sighs.

Hearing the lamentations writhing out from the depraved woman's mouth, the bishop cleared his throat before giving his sermon of condemnation. "We must be vigilant in our crusade against the wickedness of the devil, for he never rest in his hatred of mankind!" The bishop went on, "He has corrupted the heart of this woman, who by the very testimony of you people, has now been judged righteously in the eyes of God and the church!" It didn't take long before the holy man was impassioned enough to believe that at the time, he was the direct orator for the Lord Himself. "No man may perform miracles without the aid of the Almighty, so how was it that she was able to perform such works upon the sick and needy in the recent past?"

Stretching one hand toward Lisa and the other toward the crowd, the bishop continued to pass judgement saying, "Do you people not realize that you are as guilty as she!" Numerous gasps sounded from the audience. The bishop was completely at home now, intoxicated by his own self-righteousness. He looked on severely at the congregation standing before him. "Were it not for your lack of faith in God, this manipulative puppet of Satan would never have been able to use his unholy powers to influence you." He continued, "Know that in the eyes of the Most High, surely you are as guilty as she is, but unknowingly so." His 'Blessedness' gave a stern glance back at the woman and focused back on the actual target of his words. "However, ignorance is no pardon for sin; Through your lack of faith, this woman would have you believe that the trials we face as sinners upon this earth are easily lifted, without the need of our Lord." With great pleasure, the holy man believed his zealous words flowed with utmost sincerity. "Sin cannot be erased but by the grace of God through His Son, Jesus Christ!"

"Praise be to God!" wailed from a female amongst the crowd. Murmurs and repeated blessings to the Lord sounded round the entire gathering. Some even fell to a knee or both, genuinely begging for forgiveness.

"Know that God realizes the weakness inherit in all men, and readily forgives those who look for his favor." Stretching both hands to the heavens, the sanctimonious man of God finished uttering, "The church has rooted out this grave blasphemer for the sake of each of your souls. Pray for forgiveness and if the Lord sees fit, pray for the soul of the wretch who would have brought eternal damnation upon you all; this false apothecary who cured you in the name of Lucifer!"

The sun's light gradually began to fade as final preparations took place before lighting the pyre. Approaching the dejected sinner, the bishop asked her to pray to God for forgiveness and how the Lord's love knows no bounds. Lisa said nothing without any consideration of heeding the bishop's advice. He shook his head and gave the signal for the pyre to be lit.

The former leper still in tears approached the place of rest he was currently staying at, atop a hayloft in a barn. Unfortunately, his position gave him a picturesque view of the scene he wanted to keep far from his mind. He brought his knees to his chest and clenched them with both arms, rocking back and forth distraught over the ugliness he saw life to be. The red sky brought on by the setting sun resembled a mockery of all things living at the moment for him. It was just as beautiful as any other night fall, praised by poets and romantics alike, but no beauty, no God emanated from these heavens.

"Amazing, how beautiful the scenery of life is, while those who live amongst it can be so hideous." The voice came from the opposing side of where the man was weeping. He was startled so greatly that his back and palms would have passed through the wall if possible. Lisa was no longer a thought to him as terror took hold of the man's being. Unable to utter a word, the original speaker continued,

"Look down there; of all the people in this village, even those helped by the condemns' own hands, you alone recognize the vileness which is taking place right now in the hearts of each and every one of those dimwitted, gawking pigs."

The former leper calmed himself enough to look upon the speaker with modest detail. His words weren't spoken with the harshness expected from such an exclamation. They were put to the listener matter of factly. What was so odd about the uninvited guest was, firstly his being present, and more eerily, the visitor's silhouetted form produced a blue haze.

"Who might you be, if I may ask sir?" Wide-eyed and grasping at the hat in his hands, the man made it clear how cowardly he truly was.

"Do not descend from this place until the sun has risen." The tallish, thin figured man's piercing stare was enough to ensure that the cowardly man being addressed would follow the command given to him even if the barn had caught fire. "Because of your own doing, your own righteousness, you have saved yourself." The scared man didn't quite understand, but then the figure appearing to tower over him pointed out toward where the execution was taking place. The pyre had just been lit. "You are right to fear, but so long as you bear witness to what transpires and heed my words, you have no need to tremble for your life."

The speaker's form changed into a dark mist gradually, from one side of his body to the other, but before vanishing completely, spoke, "No, the Christian God is not here, but divinity is in the night. Nemesis shall take her fill in blood."


	4. Chapter 4: Vampire's Reflection

The hooded figure picked up a near by torch and began lighting the wood at the outskirts of the pyre in four spots. First, he lit the kindling to Lisa's left. Next, the overgrown, heavy set man placed the fire directly behind the woman, continuing to her right and doing the same. However, before igniting the pyre directly in front of the woman, the brute paused for some time. The crackling sounds and slowly building smoke from all around reached Lisa's ears and nose, bringing her out of a daze consumed by self pity. She lifted her head, meeting eyes with the executioner. A deep laugh came from beneath his hood as he appeared to take pleasure from the distraught visible on his victim's face. Lisa dropped her head again. Tears filled her eyes and she wondered if such cruelty would be her final interaction with the living whose sorrows she tried so desperately to ease. The executioner plunged the torch deep within the pile of sticks in front of him. Fire now completely encircled the bound woman and the flames slowly encroached toward the pyre's center.

The townsfolk remained quiet as they watched the final moments of the devil's concubine gradually come closer to an end. Not one in the crowd felt sorrow for the unfortunate girl. Forgiveness was far from any of their hearts. Instead, they saw the horrendous act as divine justice sent down from God Himself. The children looked on in their corrupted innocence, as the parents felt satisfaction fulfilling their duties as proper guardians by allowing their young to witness the murder of one thought to be corrupted by evil. Standing in front of the congregation stood the bishop and the two clergy men who accompanied him at each of his sides. The bishop looked on at the scene unflinching, content with carrying out what he considered God's will, as his two henchmen bowed their heads in continuous prayer, every now and then looking upward and making the sign of the cross directed at the sight in front of them with blessed water. All eyes were fixed upon the encroaching flames. Even the former leper looked on anxiously from his barnyard perch in stupefied anticipation of what he could not fathom may transpire. Then, suddenly, the flames encircling the pyre jutted upward, towering above to the height of the church's steeple. Gasps of wonderment sounded from the onlookers. The clergymen stopped their prayers and took a few steps back due to shock and the heat felt from the flames increase. However, the bishop stood steadfast. His mouth narrowed and eyes widened in utter amazement of what had just ensued. The view of Lisa was now completely obscured by the inferno. Not even the grateful, former disease ridden outcast with his aerial view could perceive what was going on behind the curtain of fire, but he alone among the townspeople had an idea of its cause.

Silence enveloped Lisa. She saw the flow of the fire all around her and how brightly lit she was, though she could only move her head and eyes, remaining bound to where she believed her final breathes would take place. Time seemed to have stopped. Looking down, she saw the wood set for kindling below her feet. Had she died, she wondered? Just then, a voice sounded directly in front of her. "Lisa, my student; my intrigue; my one hope… your end is upon you." Immediately, Lisa realized who it was that spoke and had made this miraculous moment before her possible. All of her worry and anxiety fled as if it had never existed to begin with. "You've come, as promised!" She sighed, knowing the vampire's words to be worth more than any precious metal or commodity man could ever offer. From out of nothing, his visage came into full focus of her eyes, but he appeared rather different than he had to her in the past. A much gentler face looked on at her, and possessed a youthful beauty beyond anything she dreamed mortally possible. Truly, if angels existed, one stood before her currently. The fallen angel spoke, "I offer you my love, but not as you know it in your mortal state. You will be as I am, eternally; not a subordinate, but as my equal. However, you must decide with haste; know your death within this world awaits you in one of two forms." Lisa trembled at the prospect. The thought of eternity brought an unfathomable angst within her. It was an inconceivable notion she knew to be absolute because of the one who laid the prospect out in front of her. "Show me..," Lisa began to ask. "Show me what you really are… what it is that I shall become." The two locked eyes momentarily before the vampire lowered his gaze, and hesitantly replied, "Very well; this is the tribulation which awaits you." He returned his stare and peered directly into the soul of the young woman. A thousand thoughts, a thousand terrors enveloped Lisa's very being. She beheld a terrifying beauty, tortured by countless centuries of anguish and hopelessness. The past that haunted the immortal's gaze flooded her mind with specific moments of woeful sorrow. His unquenchable anger and hatred for humanity fought to justify its reasoning with Lisa's own compassion for mankind. She realized that any trace of humanity which may have existed within the vampire died long ago. She also realized the magnitude and almost limitless extent of the power she would possess, but within a mind twisted from an unnatural state of being; to be a god of the dead amongst the world of the living. Dismay and repulsion gripped Lisa's heart, mind, and soul as she looked on at the tragic artistry before her. The shock from the sight was enough to stop the beating heart of her physical form. She fretted, wondering if she would also become as distant from mortal compassion as the one who stood before her. All around, the fire that encircled them began to rage uncontrollably and enclosed upon the two. "God, save me!" was the final utterance to escape from her lips as the vampire witnessed to his own dismay, the last of the woman's breath pulled from her lungs by the surrounding inferno. It was as if Lisa's essence was pulled from his grasps by God's own hand. Lisa died in that instant. It seems the Lord had spared the women from the possible naivety of her own intrigue, and from the wretched fate which Dracula alone knew and would continue to suffer until the end of time. The expression of the girl's final moments brought an old, distant sensation Dracula had not felt since he was a man. It was as if he gazed upon his own reflection for the first time in eons, realizing the hideousness that enveloped his true self. For the first time since he had become the emissary of the night, Dracula was made afraid. A fear brought on by the perception of his countenance.

Awestruck by the momentary excitement of the flames heights, the villagers felt comforted when the fire returned to its anticipated stature. Parents consoled themselves by reassuring their young ones that all was okay and the children had nothing to be frightened of. "That must have been proof that the witch was in league with the devil!" exclaimed a voice from the crowd. Exaltations of relief and sighs of comfort could be heard from all around. Cheer even sounded. The clergy men praised God and the bishop pleased with himself, bowed his head slightly with eyes closed. God's work had been accomplished as the rather large fire enclosed itself on the body of the damned soul. All was right within the Christian world which enveloped the fantasies of those who stood around. That is, until something unimaginable leapt from the fire.

A dark figure darted from the flames and into the night filled air, landing a few meters from the crowd. With its back to the people, the vampire slowly raised himself to an upright position, unscathed by the blaze. The townsfolk were taken aback and a voice from among the masses sounded, exclaiming, "The witch's familiar!" with utmost certainty.  
A single tear of blood fell from the vampire's eye. He smiled with thoughts of pure hate for God and the living. Once again, the entire world was his unconquerable enemy. He felt foolish having believed that another would welcome to share in the burden that was his alone to endure. He turned his sardonic grin from thoughts of his own plight into a sadistic, malevolent mask that created itself from the words which sounded from the single voice in the crowd. "The witch's familiar?" the vampire laughed as his voice thundered in the ears of all who were present. "A sorceress was never in your presence." He continued speaking as he turned to face the crowd. "I am the devil, and I now come to you in great wrath!" The beautiful figure which once faced his beloved object of affection, Lisa, was now a face filled with razor like teeth and eyes that burned red as seen in the embers of dying coals. His smile remained as madness consumed the vampires senses. Shrieks of petrified terror rang out from many of the women, as the men who had any little sense about them still gathered their loved ones who were consumed by a fear induced, catatonic semblance. Those who were able attempted to flee the unholy abominations presence like wild animals before a predator.

(I apologize. This needs a lot of touching up, and I left out too much. I wanted to post it though, because I'd like to work on other writings. If anyone cares, I will fix this, but at least I presented the main idea of how I'd like this story to conclude. I'm going to distance this entire work from the Castlevania series. This is meant to be an introduction to what I can best describe as the Lord of the Night/Undead/that which is anti-nature. and I see it being a vampire in the thoughts of men, though what he is, is much more.

The second part will most likely take place in modern time with the introduction of 'The Devil's Witch'. She seeks out this vampire, who I refer to as Dracula, traveling from the west in anticipation of his favor. Her own twisted form of magick revealed the vampire to her. The modern witch will represent the precociousness of motivated youth striving for its own dark desires.

I'd like for those who read my work to compare it to that of what I consider terribly lame works of today. I hope my audience can distinguish wickedness from Hollywood sell outs and attempts at quick cash grabs like we see so frequently today with books like 'Twilight' and sitcoms such as 'True Blood'/'Vampire Diaries'. A vampire should be the epitome of blasphemy in the eyes of humanity. Feed back is welcomed and thanks for reading, Please continue. I promise my works will be of a quality you have never seen or could possibly imagine).


End file.
